The U.S. Moves Its Embassy

This past week, a piece of legislation first passed in 1995 under President Clinton was finally implemented. The Congress at that time passed the Jerusalem Embassy Act, which recognized Jerusalem as the capital city of Israel and made plans to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv. Since that time, Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama have delayed the move, citing national security concerns. President Trump decided it was finally time to make the move. So, a week ago Monday, the new U.S. embassy opened in Jerusalem.

While celebrations were taking place at the new embassy, only miles away, along Israel’s border at the Gaza Strip, members of Hamas were protesting the move, seeking to storm the border into Israel while flying incendiary kites across the border into Israel. 50 of these rioters were killed by Israeli forces. Some other Palestinians were also killed, including an eight-month-old girl.

The antipathy between the Israelis and Palestinians is nothing new. Both groups claim rights to this region and look suspiciously at the intentions and activities of the other. The terrorist provocations of Hamas serve only to heighten tensions.

To some Christians, unalloyed support for the modern-day nation of Israel by the U.S. is a theological necessity, for they believe that anything less is a direct affront to the covenant that God made with Abraham to give him and his ancestors land in this region. Other Christians, among whom I would include myself, do not see a one-to-one correlation between the ancient theocracy of the people of Israel and the modern democracy of the nation of Israel. The true heirs of Abraham are not ethnic Jews living in a particular region of the world, but all those who, by faith, call on Abraham’s God – whether these people be ethnically Jewish or ethnically Gentile. Abraham’s true heirs do not so much concern themselves with a particular piece of land in the Middle East as they do with an all-encompassing kingdom of God.

This second view does not mean, of course, that Christians should not be concerned with the events that are unfolding in the Middle East. It is standard practice for sovereign nations to be able to name their own capitals and it is standard protocol for other nations to respect and recognize these capitals and place embassies in them, as the U.S. has now done with Israel. Geopolitically, Israel’s status as a democracy in a region that is widely known for oppressive regimes is an important and stabilizing influence. It is also essential to have a safe haven for ethnic Jews in an area of the world that has proven to be widely and often vociferously anti-Semitic.

At the same time, we cannot forget or overlook the struggle and suffering that many Palestinians face. Living under Hamas has never been easy. The small number of Christians in this region are doing yeoman’s work as they open their churches and homes to their Muslim neighbors who have been displaced by riots and bombings. They are shining examples of Christ’s love in an area of our world that is regularly marked by hate and unrest. These faithful people deserve our prayers and support. They too need safe places to live and free communities in which to thrive.

The unrest and violence that has been sparked by the move of the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem is a reminder of the volatility in civilization’s cradle and the fragility of human life. Every U.S. president for the past 70 years has sought to broker peace in the Middle East and, sadly, every U.S. president has failed. This is because, more than a president, we need a Prince – a Prince who knows how to bring peace. He is the One in whom Israel once hoped. He is the One who Palestinian Christians now proclaim. And He is the One the whole world still needs.

Last week, a president kept a promise to move an embassy. On the Last Day, a Prince will keep His promise to bring peace. That’ll be a day to behold.